Rotational ultrasound imaging catheter with extended catheter body telescope

ABSTRACT

The present invention generally relates to devices for imaging the interior of a vessel. The device can involve an elongated body configured to fit within the lumen of a vessel, a rotatable shaft positioned inside the elongated body, and a telescoping element, wherein a portion of the elongated body extends through the telescoping element, in which the elongated body is configured to contain the rotatable shaft inside the telescoping element.

RELATED APPLICATION

This application claims the benefit of and priority to U.S. Provisional Ser. No. 61/745,285, filed Dec. 21, 2012, which is incorporated by reference in its entirety.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present invention generally relates to a rotational imaging device for imaging the interior of a vessel.

BACKGROUND

Intravascular ultrasound (IVUS) is an important interventional diagnostic procedure for imaging atherosclerosis and other vessel diseases and defects. The procedure involves the threading of an IVUS catheter over a guidewire into a blood vessel and the acquisition of images of the surrounding area using ultrasonic echoes. The three-dimensional images obtained via IVUS are often more informative than images derived from other imaging techniques, such as angiography, which provide only two dimensional images.

Conventional IVUS catheters come in various designs, including include mechanical or rotational IVUS catheters. In a rotational IVUS catheter, a single transducer having a piezoelectric crystal is rapidly rotated while the transducer is intermittently excited with an electrical pulse. The excitation pulse causes the transducer to vibrate, sending out a series of transmit pulses. The transmit pulses are emitted at a frequency that allows time for receipt of echo signals. The sequence signals interspersed with receipt signals provides the ultrasound data required to reconstruct a complete cross-sectional image of a vessel.

Conventional rotational IVUS catheters include a drive cable disposed within a catheter body. A transducer is attached to the distal end of the drive cable. A coaxial cable or transmission line is disposed within the drive cable and also couples to the transducer. The coaxial cable delivers the intermittent electrical transmit pulses to the transducer, and delivers the received electrical radio signals from the transducer to the receiver amplifier. The IVUS catheter is removably coupled to an interface module, which controls the rotation of the drive cable and the coaxial cable within the catheter body and contains the transmitter and receiver circuitry for the transducer. Imaging catheters may also include a telescoping element, which is used to advance the transducer towards the distal end of the device.

Preventing the drive cable from buckling is important during operation of the IVUS catheter. When the drive cable folds over onto itself in the event of significant buckling, the electrical connections of the coaxial cable are severed and the imaging catheter is rendered inoperative. Even in less severe cases, buckling of the drive cable pulls the transducer inward, thereby scanning the incorrect region of the anatomy. This buckling of the drive cable often results from the small but still excessive amount of space between the drive cable and various components of the imaging device that surround the drive cable. Typically, a polyamide tube is used inside the telescope section of the catheter to constrain and support the drive cable, especially when the telescope is fully extended. This helps keep the drive cable from buckling when the telescope is moving forward from the fully extended position. The polyamide tube, however, adds unnecessary complexity (increased part number) to the device and also adds to assembly costs.

SUMMARY

The present invention provides a telescoping intraluminal imaging device in which a sheath extends over the telescoping portion of the device in order to provide increased stabilization and accommodation of telescoping drive cables.

Devices and methods of the invention reduce buckling of drive cables within an intraluminal device by extending a sheath or catheter portion of the imaging device through a telescopic region of the device. The invention provides support and contains the drive cable in the telescoping region. By extending a small-diameter catheter all the way through the telescoping element of an intraluminal device, the excessive space typically associated with drive cable buckling is eliminated.

Devices of the present invention eliminate drive cable buckling without the need for additional components, such as polyimide tubing. As such, devices of the present invention reduce device complexity and are less expensive to build. Most importantly, however, the present devices achieve greater imaging accuracy than conventional telescopic imaging catheters due to the increased steadiness of the drive cable and its associated transducer.

An intravascular device of the invention typically has an elongated body configured to fit within the lumen of a vessel, a rotatable shaft positioned inside the elongated body, and a telescoping element. As encompassed by the invention, a portion of the elongated body extends through the telescoping element and the elongated body is configured to contain the rotatable shaft inside the telescoping element. The catheter body extends through the telescope and contains the drive cable even when the telescope is fully extended.

In preferred aspects of the invention, the elongated body is a catheter and a rotatable drive cable is positioned inside the catheter. The interior dimensions of the catheter are small enough to prevent buckling of the drive cable when the drive cable extends through the telescoping element. For imaging the inside of a vessel, the drive cable may include a working element positioned, in certain aspects, at the distal region of the drive cable, which facilitates imaging the vessel interior. In certain aspects of the invention, the working element is a transducer, such as an ultrasonic transducer for use in IVUS. In other aspects of the invention, the working element comprises an optical element for use in OCT.

In certain conventional telescoping image catheters, the outer body of the catheter, distal of the telescope, contains the drive cable and keeps it from buckling. As contemplated by the present invention, however, the catheter body is also used to support the drive cable in the telescope. Accordingly, the need for a separate supporting structure, such as the polyamide tube is eliminated and the part number and complexity of the overall device is advantageously reduced.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a sectional side view of a prior art intravascular catheter.

FIG. 2 is another sectional side view of the prior art intravascular catheter of FIG. 1.

FIG. 3 is a graphical depiction of a device when in a non-extended position in accordance with the invention.

FIG. 4 is a graphical depiction of a device when in a extended position in accordance with the invention.

FIG. 5 is a side view of a device in accordance with the invention.

FIG. 6 is a detail of distal region of the device.

FIG. 7 is a sectional side view of the exemplary device of FIG. 5.

FIG. 8 is a detail of an anchor housing component of the exemplary device of FIG. 5.

FIG. 9 is a detail of a catheter coupling component of the exemplar device of FIG. 5.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

The invention generally relates to devices that can image an object in front of the device and methods of using those devices. More specifically, the invention relates to devices that include an elongated body configured for insertion into a lumen of a vessel and at least one sensor located on the elongated body configured to image an object in front of the device. The ability to image an object directly in front of the device provides a unique advantage over conventional imaging catheters that can only image at oblique angles relative to the length of the catheter.

The provided device shall now be explained in detail, especially in contrast to conventional imaging catheters. A typical rotational imaging catheter of the prior art is depicted in FIG. 1. This prior art catheter comprises a mechanically scanned IVUS catheter which mechanically spins an ultrasonic beam to sweep across a region of interest in the body. The prior art device of FIG. 1 mechanically rotates a transducer 46 that generates the ultrasound beam.

Mechanically scanning imaging catheters are formed from a telescoping portion 4 and a catheter body 2. The telescoping portion 4 is operably associated with the catheter body 2 to allow an imaging element (such as transducer 46) to translate laterally within the catheter body 2. The catheter body 2 is formed from a proximal catheter sheath 27 and a distal catheter sheath 28. The catheter body 2 is the portion of an imaging catheter that is positioned within the body for imaging. The length of a catheter body 2 is typically in the range from 125 cm to 200 cm, which allows the catheter body 2 to extend to various positions deep within the vasculature.

The catheter body 2 (sheaths 27 and 28) prevent rotating components 33 and 34 from coming into contact with the patient's tissue and causing trauma. In addition, the sheath provides a lumen 49 through which the imaging element moves along a portion of the distal length of the imaging catheter. Therefore, with a sheathed mechanical scanning IVUS catheter a volume of image data can be acquired over a region of interest without physically moving the sheaths 27 and 28 of the catheter within the patient's body.

Mechanically scanning IVUS imaging catheters contain drive cables 33 to “spin” the transducer 46 within the catheter body 2 (sheaths 27 and 28). Drive cables are currently assembled by winding multiple strands of metal wire on a mandrel to create a long spring containing a repeating series of concentric rings, or windings, of the wire. Two or more springs are wound for each drive cable sized one to fit over the other. Adjacent springs are wound in the opposite direction of each other so that the grooves between the windings do not line up and lock together. During assembly, the inner spring is inserted into the outer spring still on its winding mandrel and then released so that it expands into the outer spring. In this way, the drive cable is extremely flexible in order to navigate small tortuous distal coronary anatomy while still providing some degree of torsional rigidity between the proximal driving end and the distal end containing the transducer.

Proximal housing 25 contains engagement pins 38 that mechanically mate to the imaging system catheter interface port. Within proximal housing 25 is a connector 30 which couples in mechanical energy to the drive cable 33 and electrical energy into the transmission line 47 within the drive cable. Connector 30 is fixedly connected to drive shaft 31, such that when rotated by the imaging system, drive shaft 31 is similarly rotated. Internal drive shaft 31 has a smooth bearing surface 37 which provides the running surface for rotational bearing 36 and snap ring 35. Snap ring 35 is fixedly held in place by the groove in proximal housing 25. A fluid seal 39 prevents fluids from the lumen 49, which runs the length of the catheter, from getting into the connector 30. The distal end of internal drive shaft 31 is connected via solder, brazing, welding or gluing bond joints 32 to the drive cable 33, such that when drive shaft 31 is rotated, drive cable 33 is similarly rotated.

Connector 30 within proximal housing 25 contains an electrical interface to couple in rotating electrical energy into the transmission line 47 that is disposed within drive cable 33 and runs its entire length. Transmission line 47 couples transmit energy from the system via connector 30, through the drive cable 33, and to the transducer 46 located within the distal housing 34. The electrical excitation energy causes transducer 46 to generate a pressure wave into the lumen 49 which is filled with saline via flushing port 40. The ultrasonic energy is coupled via the saline into the ultrasonically transparent portion of the sheath 28 and into the body. Objects in the body having acoustic impedance variations reflect back a portion of the ultrasonic pressure wave which is received by the transducer 46 after passing through catheter body 2 and the saline filled lumen 49. Transducer 46 converts the received pressure signals into electrical signals which are coupled via transmission line 47 back to connector 30 and into the imaging systems' receiver. The system converts a series of scan lines acquired in the polar (R, θ) coordinate system, (similar to a beam from a lighthouse) into a slice or frame of image data by converting the polar scan lines into the Cartesian (X,Y) coordinate system for display on a X-Y scanning monitor, thus completing one rotation of the connector 30, drive shaft 31, drive cable 33, and distal housing 34.

In order to move, or translate, the rotating transducer 46 along the distal portion of the length of the lumen 49, a telescopic section 4 is added at the proximal end of the catheter. The telescopic section contains inner proximal tubular element 26, outer distal tubular element 50, and anchor housing 29. The outer distal tubular element 50, the anchor housing 29 or both are coupled to the proximal shaft 27 of the catheter body 2. The inner proximal tubular element 26 and the dive cable 33 are coupled to the proximal housing 26. For translation, the outer distal tubular element 50, anchor housing 29, and the catheter body 2 remain fixed, and the proximal housing is translated in the proximal or distal direction relative to the fixed catheter elements (50, 29, 2). As a result, the drive cable 33 and transducer 46 coupled thereto likewise translates within the catheter body 2. This allows the catheter body 2 to maintain its location within the body, while the rotating imaging transducer 46 is translated within the catheter body 2 in order to obtain images along a length of a vessel. The distal end of inner proximal tubular element 26 contains an end stop 51 to prevent the inner proximal tubular element 26 from disengaging from the outer distal tubular member 50 when the telescope is fully extended. Fluid seal 41, inside anchor housing 29 prevents fluids from lumen 49 from leaking out via the space between inner proximal tubular element 26 and outer distal tubular element 50. Groove 52 in anchor housing 29 provides a connection point for motorized (controlled) movement of the distal outer tubular element relative to the proximal housing 25.

Due to the flexible nature of the drive cable 33, the telescope section 26, 29, and 50, and catheter sheaths 27 and 28 must provide a running surface to support drive cable 33 when it is rotating. It is also important to note that drive cable 33 is of a fixed length, so that when the outer distal tubular element 50 is translated relative to the inner proximal tubular member 26, the transducer 46 is translated relative to the distal sheath 28. In this way, the transducer 46 is moved along the length of the sheath 28 to acquire a volume of image data.

Conventional telescoping catheters 1 as exemplified in FIG. 1 have several shortcomings which reduce the effectiveness of the design. As shown in FIG. 1, the outer distal telescopic tubular member 50 is attached at its proximal end to anchor housing 29 which contains fluid seal 41. Fluid seal 41, applies pressure to inner proximal tubular member 26. For this reason, inner proximal tubular member 26 must have a smooth outer surface along its entire length in order to form a fluid seal. The distal end of the outer distal tubular member 50 is bonded via glue 43, to strain relief 44 and the proximal sheath 27 of the catheter body 2. The inside diameter of the outer distal tubular member 50, is sized to accommodate the outside diameter of end stop 51 which must be larger than the outside diameter of the inner proximal tubular member 26. Therefore, the inside diameter of the outer distal tubular member 50 is larger than the outside diameter of the inner proximal tubular member 26. This creates a significant gap between the outside diameter of drive cable 33 compared to the inside diameter of the outer proximal tubular member 50.

This gap is a major deficiency of the conventional IVUS catheters. When the telescope is fully extended, the transducer is in its most proximal location within distal sheath 28 of the catheter body. Since the lumen 49 is filled with saline, the distal housing 34 and drive cable 33, must displace this fluid as the telescope is retracted and the transducer 46 is advanced into the sheath 28. This creates a backward force on drive cable 33. Due to the gap between drive cable 33 and the outer proximal tubular member 50 and the flexible nature of drive cable 33, drive cable 33 is compressed into an “S” curve as shown in FIG. 2. This “S” curve pulls the location of transducer 46 inward, thereby scanning the incorrect region of the anatomy and often leads to the drive cable 33 folding back over onto itself. When the drive cable 33 folds back over onto itself, the electrical connections of transmission line 47 are severed and the imaging catheter is rendered inoperative. Approximately 1% of all IVUS catheters used are returned as defected units as a result of this failure mechanism. Certain conventional IVUS catheters, such as the current REVOLUTION catheter by Volcano Corp., have attempted to mitigate this problem by using a polyimide tube (not shown) inside the telescope section to constrain and support the drive cable, especially when the telescope is fully extended. This helps keep the drive cable from buckling when the telescope is moving forward from the fully extended position. The polyamide tube, however, adds unnecessary complexity (increased part number) to the device and also adds to assembly costs.

As will be become evident from the following description and provided figures, the embodiments of the present invention shown in FIGS. 3-9 include improvements to the catheter portion of the device, which eliminate buckling of the drive cable without the additional complexity and cost of the polyamide tube.

In conventional rotational imaging catheters, the catheter body 106 does not extend all the way through the telescoping element, hence creating gaps (shown as 6 in FIGS. 1 and 2) between the outer surfaces and the drive cable, which can lead to buckling. In other conventional devices, the catheter body still does not extend all the way through the telescoping portion, but a separate tubular element (e.g., a polyamide tube) is used to support the drive shaft in the gap 6 in order to compensate for the gap effect and support the drive cable.

The present invention solves the above-described problems associated with the gap 6 of prior art devices by extending the catheter body 106 into the telescoping portion 4 (as shown in FIGS. 3-7). Because the catheter body 106 into the telescoping portion 4, the catheter body 106 acts to protect and provide extra support to the drive cable 110 when disposed within the telescoping portion 4. That is, the shaft of the catheter body 106 fills the gap 6 present in prior art catheters and eliminates/reduces proximal buckling of the drive cable in the telescoping portion as seen in the prior art catheter of FIGS. 1 and 2. The components and mechanics of the catheter 100 of the invention are described in more detail hereinafter.

As best seen in FIGS. 3 and 4, the catheter includes a catheter body 106 (formed from a first portion 4 and a second portion 5) and a telescoping portion 4. The telescoping portion 4 is operably associated with a proximal housing 109 that includes a rotary unit with a drive shaft. The proximal housing 109 is able translate relative to the catheter body 106 (as shown by arrow X in FIG. 4) while providing rotation to a drive cable 110 via the drive shaft. The proximal housing 109 can be translated manually or be coupled to a system (such a pullback device) that facilitates the movement of the proximal housing 109 and rotation of the drive shaft within the proximal housing 109. The drive cable 110 carries at its distal end a working element. In certain embodiments, the working element is an imaging transducer 111. As may be appreciated, the working element could alternatively be an optical minor or an optical lens, depending on the intended use of the catheter. If the working element is an optical element such as a minor or lens, the transmission line of the device would then be replaced by an optical fiber, for example. When the drive cable 110 is rotated and translated within the catheter body 106, the imaging transducer 111 is able to obtain cross-sectional and tomographic images along a length of a body lumen (such as a blood vessel).

The catheter body 106 includes a first portion 5 and a second portion 3. The second portion 5 is a portion of the catheter body 106 that is not disposed within the telescoping section 4. The second portion 5 of the catheter system may range from 125 cm to 200 cm, and the portion of the catheter body 106 that is introduced into the a patient's body. The second portion 5 of the catheter body 106, thus mirrors the catheter shafts 27 and 28 of the prior art catheters. However, instead of the catheter body 106 terminating at the second portion 5 like prior art catheters, the catheter body 106 in devices of the invention extends into the telescoping section 4. The first portion 3 of the catheter body 106 is the portion that extends into the telescoping portion 4 of the catheter 100. Thus, the catheter body 106 extends over the drive cable 110 within the telescoping portion 4 such that the catheter body 106 fills the gap 6 (of prior art catheters (FIGS. 1 and 2) and provides additional support to the drive cable 110. The catheter body 106 can be formed from a single material or multiple materials. In addition, the catheter body 106 may be segmented (e.g. of variable flexibility along its length). For example, the first portion 3 of the catheter 106 within the telescoping may be stiffer than the second portion 5 of the catheter body 106. In addition, the second portion 5 of the catheter body 106 may have a stiff proximal section and a more flexible distal section. Catheters bodies with variable thickness are described in more detail in U.S. Publication No. 2009/0018393.

The telescoping section 4 contains distal outer tubular member 105, an inner proximal tubular member 102 that slides into the distal outer tubular member 105, and an anchor housing unit 104 with an optional fluid seal 103 (in FIGS. 5 and 6). Although tubular members 102 and 105 are described as tubular, it is understood that these members can have other shapes. The outer distal tubular member may be coupled to the catheter body 106 via catheter coupling 107. The anchor housing unit 104 is coupled to the distal outer tubular member 105 and the catheter body 106. The anchor housing unit 104 can be held, either manually or by a system (such as pullback device), in a fixed position, thereby also maintaining the positioning of the distal outer tubular member 105 and the catheter body 106. The inner proximal tubular member 102 and the drive cable 110 is operably associated with the proximal housing such that translation of the proximal housing 109 causes the inner proximal tubular member 102 and the drive cable 110 to likewise translate. The proximal housing 109 can likewise be associated with the system (such as a pullback device) that causes the proximal housing and the inner proximal tubular member 102 and drive cable 102 to translate. The drive cable 110 is coupled to a rotary drive shaft of the proximal housing 109 which causes the drive cable 110 to rotate as well. The system in addition to translating the drive cable may be configured to provide rotation to the rotary drive shaft.

It is important to note that drive cable 110 is of a fixed length, so that when the inner tubular member 102 of the telescope section 4 is translated relative to the outer tubular member 105 and catheter body 106, the transducer 111 is translated relative to the catheter body 106

Each of the distal outer tubular member 105, inner proximal tubular member 102, anchor housing unit 104, and catheter body 106 define a lumen to receive the drive cable 110 therethrough. In addition to drive cable 110, the lumen of the distal outer tubular member 105 is configured to receive the inner tubular member 102 and the catheter body 106. The lumen of inner proximal tubular member 102 is configured to receive the catheter body 106 and the drive cable 110. That is, the lumen of the inner proximal tubular member 102 is sized to fit the outer diameter of the proximal section 3 of the catheter body 106. These configurations allow the inner proximal tubular member 102 and the drive cable 110 to slideably translate (as shown by x in FIG. 4) relative to outer distal tubular member 105 and catheter body 106.

FIGS. 3 and 4 illustrate translation of the telescoping portion 104 during an imaging pullback. An imaging pullback is the translation of the imaging transducer along a length of the catheter body. During the imaging pullback, the imaging transducer is able to obtain images along a length of the vessel in which the catheter is disposed. When rotated and translated, the imaging transducer is able to obtain cross-sectional and tomographical images of the vessel.

FIG. 3 illustrates the catheter 100 in a fully non-extended position. In a fully non-extended position, the distal outer tubular member 105, the inner proximal tubular member 102, and the proximal section 3 of the catheter body 106 are substantially concentrically aligned. When in the fully non-extended position, the imaging transducer 111 at a distal end of the drive cable 110 is at the distal end of the catheter body 106. Typically, imaging is initiated when the imaging transducer 111 is at the distal end of the catheter body 106, and then imaging transducer is pulled back (proximally) within the catheter body to image along a length of the catheter body. In order to initiate the pullback imaging, the telescoping section 4 transitions from a non-extended position to an extended position. In order to transition into an extended position, the inner proximal member 102 and drive cable 110 are moved in the proximal direction relative to the catheter body 106 and outer distal tubular member 105. FIG. 4 illustrates the catheter 100 in a fully extended position. As shown in FIG. 4, the inner proximal tubular member 4, drive cable 111, and proximal housing 109 moved a length L in the distal direction. At the same time, the distal outer tubular member 105, the anchor housing 105 and the catheter body 106 maintain their position. This causes the imaging transducer 111 coupled to drive cable 110 to likewise translate a distance L within the catheter body 106.

As an alternative to pullback imaging, the catheter of the invention is also configured to image using a push-forward. For this imaging, the telescoping portion 4 of the catheter 100 transitions from an extended position to a non-extended position.

In certain embodiments and as shown in FIG. 4, the inner proximal tubular member 102 may include stoppers 133 that act to stop the proximal translation of the inner proximal tubular member 102 at a certain point. For example, the stoppers 133 can be configured to prevent the inner proximal tubular member 102 from exiting a proximal end of the anchor housing 104.

The drive cable 110, is generally the same as drive cables associated with devices of the prior art. In contrast to the prior art devices, however, the catheter sheath 106 surrounding the drive cable 110 extends all the way back through the telescope portion 4 of the device, containing the drive cable 110 even when the telescope portion 4 is fully extended (i.e. when the distal outer tubular element 105 of the telescoping portion is fully extended over the catheter body 106).

FIG. 5 illustrates an additional view of a catheter of the invention when the telescoping region 4 is in an extended position. As shown in FIG. 5, the catheter includes a telescoping section 4 (with outer distal tubular member 105, inner proximal tubular member 102, and anchor housing 104 with fluid seal 103) and a catheter body 106 (first portion 3 and section portion 5). The first portion 3 of the catheter body 106 is disposed within the telescoping portion 4 to provide more support to the drive cable 111 (which is positioned within the telescoping portion 4 and catheter body 106). As further shown in FIG. 5, the inner proximal tubular member 102 is coupled to proximal housing 109.

In certain embodiments, the proximal housing 109 may contain contains engagement pins that mechanically mate to the imaging system catheter interface port. A connector 113 may be position that provides mechanical energy to the drive cable 110 and electrical energy into a transmission line within the drive cable. Connector 113 is fixedly connected to drive shaft 114, such that when rotated by the imaging system, drive shaft 114 is similarly rotated. Internal drive shaft 114 may have a smooth bearing surface which provides the running surface for a rotational bearing and snap ring. The snap ring may be fixedly held in place by the groove in proximal housing 109. A fluid seal 103 prevents fluids from the lumen 117, which runs the length of the catheter 100, from getting into the connector 113. The distal end of drive shaft 114 may be connected via solder, brazing, welding or gluing bond joints to the drive shaft 114, such that when drive shaft 114 is rotated, drive cable 110 is similarly rotated.

Connector 113 within proximal housing 109 contains an electrical interface to couple in rotating electrical energy into the transmission line disposed within drive cable 110 and runs its entire length. The transmission line couples transmit energy from the system via connector 113, through the drive cable 110, and to the transducer located at the end of the drive cable 110. The electrical excitation energy causes the transducer to generate a pressure wave into the catheter 100 which is filled with saline via flushing port 101. The ultrasonic energy generated by the transducer 111 sends acoustic signals through the saline and the sheath to the biological or non-biological objects in a body lumen (e.g. vessel tissue, plaque, thombus, blood) and the transducers receives returns signals of those objects. Objects in the body having acoustic impedance variations reflect back a portion of the ultrasonic pressure wave which is received by the transducer 111 after passing through catheter body 106 and the saline filled catheter body 106. The transducer 111 converts the received pressure signals into electrical signals which are coupled via transmission line back to connector 113 and into the imaging systems' receiver. The system converts a series of scan lines acquired in the polar (R, θ) coordinate system, (similar to a beam from a lighthouse) into a slice or frame of image data by converting the polar scan lines into the Cartesian (X,Y) coordinate system for display on a X-Y scanning monitor, thus completing one rotation of the connector 113, drive shaft 114, drive cable 110, and transducer 111.

FIG. 7 illustrates a cross-sectional view of the catheter depicted in FIG. 5 (that is in an extended position). In order to move, or translate, the rotating transducer 111 along the distal portion of the length of the catheter body 106, a telescopic section 4 is added to the catheter 100. The telescopic section 4 contains distal outer tubular member 105, a proximal inner tubular member 102 that slides into the distal outer tubular member 105 and an anchor housing unit 104 with a fluid seal 103. In certain embodiment, the proximal end of the proximal inner tubular member 102 contains an end stop (such as stoppers 33) to prevent the proximal inner tubular member 102 from disengaging the outer tubular member 105 when the telescope section 4 is fully extended. Fluid seal 103 is located inside the anchor housing 104 and prevents fluids for priming the catheter body 106 from leaking out via the space between distal outer tubular member 105 and the proximal inner tubular member 102. The device 100 may also, in certain embodiments, encompass a strain relief component that contains a groove which provides a connection point for motorized (controlled) movement of the telescopic section 4. As shown in FIG. 6, the catheter body 106 passes through a catheter coupling 107 distal to the anchor housing 104. In certain embodiments, the catheter body includes one or more holes 108 within the catheter body 106 to help purge air out of the catheter body during the priming process.

FIG. 8 provides a close-up view of section E in FIG. 7. Section E highlights the overlapping telescoping section 4 at the location of the anchor housing 104. As shown in FIG. 8, the catheter body 106 is disposed within and co-axially aligned with portions of the outer distal tubular member 105 and the inner proximal tubular member 102. The inner proximal tubular member 102 and drive cable 111 translates relative to the catheter body 106 and the outer distal tubular body 105 when the telescoping section 4 transitions from the extended position to a non-extended position. As a result, the imaging transducer 111 is likewise translated within a distal portion of the catheter body 106.

As mentioned above, the catheter 100 of the encompassed device not only supports the distal portion of the drive cable 110 as in conventional IVUS catheters, the provided catheter also supports the drive cable 110 inside the telescope section 104, preventing potential buckling by eliminating the gap between the inner surfaces of the telescope components and the drive cable. Moreover, the encompassed device eliminates the need for a separate polyamide tube, thus reducing device complexity and overall cost. The extension of the catheter throughout the device and telescope components is particularly evident in FIGS. 3 and 4, which illustrates the catheter in the extended and non-extended positions.

In certain embodiments, the components comprising the telescoping section 4 and the catheter body 106 are prepared from biocompatible materials, which are well-known in the art. Catheter bodies and/or telescoping components will typically be composed of an organic polymer that is fabricated by conventional extrusion techniques. Suitable polymers include polyvinylchloride, polyurethanes, polyesters, polytetrafluoroethylenes (PTFE), silicone rubbers, natural rubbers, and the like. Optionally, the catheter body may be reinforced with braid, helical wires, coils, axial filaments, or the like, in order to increase rotational strength, column strength, toughness, pushability, and the like. Suitable catheter bodies may be formed by extrusion, with one or more channels being provided when desired. The catheter diameter can be modified by heat expansion and shrinkage using conventional techniques. The resulting catheters will thus be suitable for introduction to the vascular system, often the coronary arteries, by conventional techniques. Preferably, at least a portion of the catheter body is flexible.

According to certain aspects, the proximal housing 109 and/or anchor housing 104 may be operably associated with a system that operates to transition the catheter between the extended and non-extended positions. Such a system is commonly referred to as a pullback device or patient interface module (PIM) for rotational catheters. The pullback device can perform several functions such as providing the translation and rotation of the catheter components as needed to obtain an image along a length of a body lumen. In addition, the pullback system can be configured to provide the necessary energy to the imaging element located on the distal end of the drive cable. The energy provided can be optical (e.g. for optical coherence tomography imaging elements) or electrical (e.g. for ultrasonic imaging elements). Patient interface modules are known in the art, and are described in, for example, U.S. Publication No. 2003/0187369 and U.S. 2013/0223798. A suitable pullback device for use with methods of the invention is the SPINVISION Pullback device from Volcano Corporation. When using pullback devices, the proximal housing 109 can be configured to mate or connect with the pullback device being used.

While particular embodiments of the present invention have been shown and described, modifications may be made, and it is therefore intended to cover in the appended claims, all such changes and modifications which fall within the true spirit and scope of the invention as defined by those claims.

INCORPORATION BY REFERENCE

References and citations to other documents, such as patents, patent applications, patent publications, journals, books, papers, web contents, have been made throughout this disclosure. All such documents are hereby incorporated herein by reference in their entirety for all purposes.

EQUIVALENTS

The invention may be embodied in other specific forms without departing from the spirit or essential characteristics thereof. The foregoing embodiments are therefore to be considered in all respects illustrative rather than limiting on the invention described herein. Scope of the invention is thus indicated by the appended claims rather than by the foregoing description, and all changes which come within the meaning and range of equivalency of the claims are therefore intended to be embraced therein. 

What is claimed is:
 1. An intravascular imaging device, comprising: an elongate, catheter body sized and shaped for positioning within of a vessel of a patient, the catheter body comprising a proximal portion and a distal portion, wherein a sidewall of the proximal portion of the catheter body comprises a plurality of holes; a flushing port disposed at the proximal portion of the catheter body and in fluid communication with a lumen of the catheter body such that the lumen of the catheter body is configured to be filled with a fluid via the flushing port during a flushing; a rotatable drive cable positioned within the lumen of the catheter body, the drive cable comprising a proximal portion and a distal portion; an ultrasound transducer coupled to the distal portion of the drive cable and within the distal portion of the catheter body; a telescoping element comprising an inner tubular member and an outer tubular member, the telescoping element disposed at the proximal portion of the catheter body, wherein the proximal portion of the catheter body extends within a lumen of the outer tubular member and a lumen of the inner tubular member; an anchor housing coupled to the outer tubular member; and a coupling member proximal of the ultrasound transducer and coupled to the outer tubular member and the catheter body to keep the outer tubular member and the catheter body stationary relative to one another, wherein the anchor housing is proximal of the coupling member, wherein the lumen of the outer tubular member comprises a completely enclosed space bounded by the anchor housing, the coupling member, and the outer tubular member, and wherein the distal portion of the catheter body is distal of the completely enclosed space; wherein the completely enclosed space of the outer tubular member is in fluid communication with the flushing port via the lumen of the catheter body and the plurality wherein the plurality of holes is positioned only within the completely enclosed space of the outer tubular member, wherein the plurality of holes is open to the completely enclosed space of the outer tubular member, and wherein the plurality of holes is configured to pass air within the lumen of the catheter body to the completely enclosed space of the outer tubular member as the fluid flows through the lumen of the catheter body from the proximal portion of the catheter body to the distal portion of the catheter body during the flushing.
 2. The device of claim 1, wherein the telescoping element comprises an extended configuration and a non-extended configuration, and the catheter body is configured to contain the drive cable when the telescoping element is disposed in the extended configuration.
 3. The device of claim 1, wherein the catheter body comprises a first diameter, the inner tubular member comprises a second diameter, and the outer tubular member comprises a third diameter, wherein the first diameter is less than the second diameter, and the second diameter is less than the third diameter.
 4. The device of claim 1, wherein the distal portion of the catheter body is more flexible than the proximal portion of the catheter body.
 5. The device of claim 1, wherein the catheter body further comprises a central portion between the proximal and distal portions, wherein the distal portion is more flexible than the central portion.
 6. The device of claim 1, wherein the drive cable within the telescoping element is positioned within and directly supported by the lumen of the catheter body.
 7. The device of claim 1, wherein the plurality of holes is disposed on a portion of the catheter body extending within the completely enclosed space of the outer tubular member.
 8. The device of claim 1, wherein the anchor housing comprises a fluid seal.
 9. The device of claim 1, wherein the plurality of holes is positioned proximate to the coupling member.
 10. The device of claim 1, wherein a diameter of the coupling member is smaller than a diameter of the anchor housing.
 11. The device of claim 3, wherein the diameter of the coupling member tapers from the third diameter of the outer tubular member to the first diameter of the catheter body. 